Reading up on recipes

Seven simple ingredient additions and technique tweaks — including cornstarch, brown butter, spices, and acidic finishes — can significantly improve scrambled eggs.

Claire Saffitz shares a recipe for a strawberry-almond cookie studded with pistachios and macadamia nuts as part of NYT Cooking's Cookie Week.

Creamy mashed potatoes can be made using only potatoes, sour cream, and the reserved starchy cooking water, omitting butter and milk.